Ginkgo Biloba has a long history of medicinal use in traditional Chinese medicine, where the seed is most commonly used. Botanical name: Gingkoacea. The extract of ginkgo leaves is used medicinally in North America, where it's one of the most popular medicinal herbs, and many other countries around the world. Other names for ginkgo include Maidenhair tree, Kew tree, and Japanese silver apricot.

Plant Description

Ginkgo biloba is the oldest living tree species. A single tree can live as long as 1,000 years and grow to a height of 120 feet. It has short branches with fan-shaped leaves and inedible fruits that smell bad. The fruit has an inner seed, which may be poisonous. Ginkgos are tough, hardy trees and often seen as a large tree in parks and gardens. Some of these can easily be grown in a small garden. All are very well suited to container growing where they will live happily for many years with minimal attention and occasional feeding.The leaves turn brilliant colors in the fall.Growing your Ginkgo in a containerMany Ginkgos do very well in containers or pots placed on a patio amongst other plants and with correct feeding and watering, can live happily in a pot for many years. To pot up your Ginkgo:

Use a pot no more than twice the size of the pot the plant is bought in, do not over-pot. Use a good quality multi-purpose compost and add 10% grit to this

Top up each spring with a small amount of slow release fertiliser. Make sure the pot has good drainage holes and stand the pot on feet or tiles to allow free drainage through the bottom of the pot.

Remember to keep container grown plants well watered when they are in full leaf. Do not rely on the rain as most of the water will be shed away from the pot by the tree’s leaf canopy.

Properly pruning a ginkgo tree is essential to its health and appearance.

Although Chinese herbal medicine has used both the ginkgo leaf and seed for thousands of years, modern research has focused on the standardized Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) made from the dried green leaves. This standardized extract is highly concentrated and seems to treat health problems (particularly circulatory problems) better than the non-standardized leaf alone.

Top 5 Health Benefits of Ginkgo Biloba

More than 40 components of the ginkgo biloba tree have been isolated and identified, but only two of them -- flavonoids and terpenoids -- are believed to account for Ginkgo biloba’s beneficial health effects. Flavonoids are plant-based antioxidants, and studies have revealed that flavonoids protect the nerves, heart muscle, blood vessels, and retina from damage. Terpenoids aid blood flow by dilating the blood vessels and reducing the stickiness of platelets.

Ginkgo biloba’s natural health benefits have been recognized by practitioners of traditional medicine. They use the health benefits to treat circulatory disorders and enhance memory. The top five health benefits of ginkgo biloba are:

1) Dementia and Alzheimer's disease:

Ginkgo biloba was used originally to regulate blood flow to the brain. Further studies revealed that it may protect nerve cells damaged by Alzheimer's disease. Many studies reveal that ginkgo biloba can improve memory and thinking in people affected by Alzheimer's or vascular dementia. Consumption of Gingko everyday helps in fighting signs like depression, performance anxiety, poor concentration, confusion, dizziness, headaches, absent-mindedness and more. This is because one of the main reasons for reduced cerebral capacity has been reduced blood flow to the brain. And by helping the arteries dilate and expand, the herb helps better blood flow to the brain.

2) Intermittent Claudication: For people with intermittent claudication, it is very painful to walk. Published studies reveal that people taking ginkgo biloba can walk roughly 37 yards more than people taking a placebo.

3) Glaucoma: According to one study, people with glaucoma who took 120 mg of ginkgo biloba daily for eight weeks realized that their vision had improved.

4) Memory Enhancement:

Ginkgo biloba is popular as a "brain herb." Studies have proven that it can improve memory in people with dementia. Ginkgo biloba is commonly added to nutrition bars, soft drinks, and fruit smoothies to boost memory and enhance cognitive performance.

5) Macular Degeneration: It is a progressive, degenerative eye disease that impairs the retina. It is one of the most common causes of blindness in the United States. The flavonoids found in ginkgo biloba may help cure or alleviate some retinal problems

6) Others:Ginkgo leaves are believed to contain compounds that thin blood and help to improve muscle tone in the walls of blood vessels. This may enhance blood flow. In saying this, there have been reports of Ginkgo greatly improving memory recall when being taken before exams, due to the increased blood flow in the brain.

Ginkgo Biloba also has a very powerful effect on the circulatory system so if you get cold hands, feet, and head, this is the herb for you. It also assists the heart and helps prevent and treat strokes by preventing formation of blood clots.

Another useful effect of Gingko is that it can help cannabis smokers restore short-term memory by sending more oxygen to the brain.

Heart disease is one of the biggest killers in the world and in an ideal world medical practitioners would recommend Ginkgo Biloba to all people over the age of 50 due to its ability to dilate blood vessels, allowing improved blood flow to the tissues and inhibiting the clumping of blood platelets which contribute to heart problems, strokes and artery conditions.

Ginkgo Biloba is a unique species of tree with no close living relatives and is one of the best-known examples of a living fossil. The flowers are dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required) and are pollinated by wind. The plant is not self-fertile. The leaves are best harvested in the late summer or early autumn just before they begin to change colour. They are dried for later use.

Precautions / ContraindicationsBecause of the nature of the herb it should not be taken if on heart medications. Gingko also may increase the risk of bleeding in people who take anticoagulant medicines such as warfarin and anti-inflammatory medicines such as aspirin. Constituents in ginkgo leaves may affect blood clotting, so ginkgo leaf extracts shouldn't be used by people with bleeding disorders. People with epilepsy (or anyone with a history of seizures) should avoid ginkgo, because it may increase the frequency of seizures.

Ginkgo leaf products may affect blood sugar levels, so people with diabetes should only be used under the supervision of a health care provider. The safety of ginkgo in pregnant or nursing women and children isn't known. Other than that it is wonderfully safe especially for our irreplaceable brain.

What are the Side Effects of Ginkgo?Side effects of ginkgo leaf include excessive bleeding. Rarely, seizures have been reported in people using either the ginkgo leaf or seed. Other side effects include digestive problems, headaches, allergic skin reactions, or muscle weakness.

People should not consume fresh ginkgo seeds. Roasted ginkgo seeds may cause diarrhea, nausea, indigestion, vomiting, or allergic skin reactions. Side effects of fresh ginkgo seeds or over 10 roasted ginkgo seeds may include difficulty breathing, seizures, unconsciousness and death.

HGH is a complex molecule and has 191 amino acids, mainly assisting in regulating our body’s metabolic rate. It plays a vital role in the body processes. There is a strong interaction between the receptors on tissues of our body and the HGH.

The receptors are presents on all the vital organs of the body. HGH also stimulates the liver and other tissues, leading to the release of insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1), which in turn stimulates the production of cartilage cells.